Page 20 - BOSS Today Issue 17

Special Report - Beverages

Learning

and

improving

The office drinks market has seen how the high street and supermarkets have
been performing - and aims to do things better

here seems to be a around the water cooler about growth of chains like Costa “The
Tconsensus among the office how the tea and coffee in the Coffee and, of course, Starbucks.
beverages industry that, while office kitchen could be so much This then should have had an “explosion”
the market has seen remarkable better, particularly now that impact on the office market itself,
growth in the past few years, you can get Blue Mountain or and by all accounts it has. of upmarket
you wouldn’t cite it as a perfect Sumatran coffee on even the Tony Torrible, Managing
example of innovation leading quietest town’s high street, really Director of North West Teas, coffee shops
the way. have to grow before their effect claims to be the UK’s largest has definitely
can truly be seen.
dedicated tea and coffee
“Innovation happens on
Bomb threats and fake money are just two of the cases that a project set up by
the high street and then filters But for that very reason the wholesaler, offering 850 facilities changed
police and office product suppliers has helped in recent months
management stock keeping
market, while it may not initially
through into the office products
distribution network once appear innovative, can hardly be units on a next day service demand.”
established with the consumer,” called static. Because if there is to stocked and non-stocked
says Neil Basham, Purchasing one revolution that has hit the dealers. He says the “explosion”
Director at the dealer group high street in recent years it is of upmarket coffee shops has
Integra. the huge growth in the range definitely changed demand.
In other words, those whispers of hot drinks on offer, with the “Customers are trading up in all

20 BOSS TODAY | May/June 2013

Beverages.indd 4 29/05/2013 14:34